Old type bridal costume of Kymi

The rare old type bridal costume of Kymi consists of the short chemise of pure silk chequered material with delicate gold embroidery at the neck opening and round the sleeves. The dress, made of pure silk brocade imported from Europe, has a hem of a different brocade. The brocaded design of the hem is the same as that of the jacket but the material is of poorer quality, which reveals the existence of two kinds of material with the same woven design. The jacket is made on the same pattern as the “gounela” of the summer costume with its dark, glossy “doula foustani”. Round the waist is a gold-embroidered belt with couched braid and “thilykotaria” of hammered silver. The embroidery on the belt perfectly matches that of the mules. The mules are secured by two narrow, off-white silk ribbons tied in a bow round the ankle. The headdress consists of a white triangular “tsemberi” (scarf) and a green triangular kerchief, wound into a sort of roll on one side. The part of it on the forehead is adorned with a large red ‘moon’ (“fengari”). A gossamer silk “bolia” (headscarf), 3.25 metres long, covers the entire headdress; it has probably lost the gold trimming that is a usual feature of such scarves. The headdress is secured by a chinstrap, the “kapitsali”, with embroidery matching that of the belt and mules. Peloponnesian Folklore Foundation Collection